Chapter Text
The worst part is that Ewron has no idea how many days have passed. Whatever the Federation gave Juan to measure time with, Ewron hasn't had the honor of receiving it. He could have been here three days, five, maybe even a week. He didn't know. It probably won't surprise anyone if he reveals that the Federation's underground prison has no windows. However, he considered the lack of any clocks to be excessive. They really do try to drive their victims insane. The problem is, Ewron was already insane before he got here, so the white bastards will have to be more innovative. A little creativity wouldn't hurt them.
I mean, really? A cell that looks like a psychiatric ward couldn't be more cliché if it wanted to be. The alternation between complete isolation and the brutal beatings they call "interrogation" isn't anything groundbreaking either. Although he had to give them credit, at least they were good at hitting where it hurts. Every time he refused to tell them the truth (which happened every time), they found new ways to hurt him. The sadistic dicks even found their favorite method. Under normal circumstances, Ewron is certain he'd be dead by now. He's literally an assassin for hire; he knows what he's saying. What they did to him on the first day should have made him bleed out, but no, that would have been too easy for the Federation. After each torture session, they use a healing potion, not the normal kind, but a significantly weakened one. Its sole purpose is to heal him enough to survive and be usable a few hours later. Ewron wondered if they used similar methods on Juan, Aldo, or Quackity.
For their sake, he hoped not. He could handle it. He was a cockroach. No one else could. Well, except maybe Ash, but Ewron didn't even want to imagine him in that situation. Panda generally didn't want to imagine him right now. It would only get harder. If Ewron thought too much about the outside world, he would miss it more, which would make him break during interrogation, and he had no intention of doing that. The last thing he needed was the Federation learning the details about his necromantic powers. Ewron realized that until they knew how to bring someone back to life, they would hold back. If anything about the Federation was certain, it was that they had kidnapped them to this island to torture them long term. The veterans of the first island said it was one giant inhumane experiment. You can't conduct an experiment if your guinea pigs died. Until they figured out how to keep them alive forever, they still had to be somewhat cautious. Ewron didn't want to be responsible for handing them the solution to this problem on a silver platter.
That's why he has to be strong. No matter how hard it is or how much it hurts, he has to be strong. No matter how many times they break his bones, he has to be strong. No matter how many times they cut him open on this table, he has to be strong. No matter how much the people on this island don't care, he has to be strong. No matter that no one cares about him, he has to be strong.
Ash would be disappointed if he broke. Ewron doesn't want Ash to be disappointed with him. If he is disappointed, he will never come for him. Ewron really wants Ash to come for him. Ewron is strong, but Ash is stronger, and Panda doesn't know how much strength he has left. He really wants to see Ash in person again.
He just prayed that Ash would miss him hard enough to come here. There's always the possibility that he's been avoiding him these days because Ewron was a naive fool and wasn't special to Ash at all. Maybe he's glad he doesn't have to worry about him. If he did, he'd have come here already, right? Ash knows where the prison is. Ash went above and beyond to find Aldo, so he has to come for Ewron too, right?
The Federation says no one's looking for him, but the Federation is lying. The Federation can't be trusted. The recordings they're showing him must be fake. They want him to break down. He can't do that. He won't give up until he meets Ash face to face and Ash tells him he doesn't care. Until that happens, he has to fight. But the burden is getting heavier. As heavy as his eyelids. He's tired. He should be able to sleep for a moment before those white motherfuckers show up again. He closed his eyes and tried to get as comfortable as possible despite the unimaginable pain.
Ash, please, hurry. I don't know how much longer I can hold out.
______________________________________________________________
Five hellish days had passed since Ewron's disappearance, and Ash was frantic with worry. Despite how many islanders had been involved, no one had a solid idea how to help without making things worse for everyone. Ash slowly began to regret mobilizing the entire island in the first place. Of course, the islanders were still unaware of Ash's true reason for determination to rescue Ewron. It was easy to create the excuse for his actions. After all this was the fourth time in a very short time that the Federation had taken someone away, and they needed to finally take a stronger stand against them because no one could be sure there wouldn't be another. It worked like magic and wasn’t entirely untrue.
Despite considerable initial motivation, it quickly became clear that none of the plans could work. Ash and Fariis went to the Federation base again during those days, and unfortunately, Ash's worst suspicions were confirmed. This time, they were unable to get inside. They couldn't even get close before the alarms went off. As it turns out, the Feds took these ten break-ins to heart and finally took proper measures to protect themselves. Now this base more closely matched the descriptions of the Federation buildings on the first island and how they looked in Ash misty memories. The bastards had even miraculously blocked the pearls and chorus fruits from working.
Today marks the fifth day of islanders' meetings ending in failure. With each rejected plan, morale plummets. Ash is almost certain the Dutch have given up on Ewron. Despite Juan's great help, North can't fully focus on this mission due to the situation with Adlo, who has returned from Federation captivity and isn't behaving like himself. Ash can't really blame them, no matter how frustrated he is. The only thing that worries him is the reaction of the inhabitants of the Polish Cave. The only ones who seemed genuinely concerned about the situation were Nexe and Quackity, both actively trying to participate in the brainstorming sessions despite their hopelessness. Multi and Graf, on the other hand, seemed completely unfazed by the situation from the start, as if they had expected it to happen. And while they did try to contribute, they didn't seem as committed as kidnapping of a friend would require. Ash didn't like it at all.
He also mourned Haiper's absence. Not that he expected him to be there, but deep down, he hoped that maybe the old Haiper would return, even if only for a moment. The Haiper who had been his right-hand man, the one he could always rely on, the one who, despite his frequent irritation, cared for Ewron in his own way.
And so he found himself alone in the Pantheon. He sent both Fariis and Katie away, as it was already late. They wouldn't be much use if they stayed up all night and couldn't think straight. He sat in his chair, staring at the place where Ghosty had once been.
What if the consequences of the ritual have already killed him? What if we're here planning and he's already dead? Maybe all this is pointless because we're just waiting for his corpse to arrive. He'll be just another person the Federation took from you. You should never have been on that ship. You should never have approached him. If you hadn't, they wouldn't have noticed him. You might as well give up and go back to them yourself, like the good, weak lab rat you are.
Wait.
Go back to them.
No, no. That's stupid and risky. If he miscalculates, they might as well just take him away and leave Ewron to his fate.
But... But what if?
The Federation wanted him to stop trying to break into their prison. They threatened him, and he just laughed in their face. They couldn't react well to that. Maybe he could negotiate something. If the Feds wanted him back, they would have taken him already. They'd proven it wasn't a problem. However, getting him back is clearly not their goal. They seem to want to keep him as far away from them as possible actually. Maybe, just maybe, he can negotiate Ewron's release. It's a slim chance, but the only one he seems to have at the moment.
As certain of his decision as he could possibly be, he wrote a message to Fariis. He wrote where he was going and why. He left precise instructions on what to do if he didn't return within two days. He hoped it wouldn't come to that, but he wasn't about to leave what remained of the Regime in chaos if he didn't return.
Filled with determination, he set off for the Regime waypoint. No matter how afraid he truly was of going directly to the Federation, no matter how risky it was, no matter how much he didn't want to return, he had to retrieve Ewron one way or another. Any cost would be worth it.
With these thoughts in mind, he teleported to the vicinity of the Federation prison. He was genuinely surprised they hadn't found and destroyed this waypoint yet. Small achievements in the ocean of despair.
He walked to the edge of the alarm sensors. He closed his eye and took a deep breath to calm his racing heart. Get a grip. He's waiting for you. Be useful for once.
“Hey Federation! I know you're listening!” He shouted, entering the secure area and setting off the alarms. There was no turning back now. “I come here today in peace. I wish to negotiate with you about your prisoner!” A few moments of silence passed. Ash began to worry he was just making a fool of himself and they would simply ignore him. “Let me in and let's talk like civilized humans!”
“Oh, but you're not human, so this might be a bit difficult,” a robotic voice said from behind him. Ash turned sharply and saw Cucurucho standing behind him. The fucking Federation and their fucking tricks. “The prodigal son is coming home.” Ash clenched his jaw at the remark. He can't be provoked now.
“I'm here to—”
“Yeah, I’ve heard,” Cucurucho interrupted, waving his hand dismissively. “You want your Panda back, I presume. I really don't know what you see in him. I've always been more of a bird person”
“Don't talk about him like he's one of your sick experiments, or I will not control myself,” Ash growled. Cucurucho tilted his head slightly to the side.
“For someone who came to negotiate, you seem to have no sense of remorse.” Ash clenched his fists. Don't let yourself be provoked.
“Pardon me. That was inappropriate.”
“Hmm. That's better. Now tell me what you can offer us for the freedom of this panda Ashswag. Both Aldo and Juan have been with us longer for lesser offenses than breaking into our prison. We can't set a bad example you know”
“If you were trying to punish him for breaking in, I and Fariis would be in the cell too. But you know that wouldn't work on me for long, right? Ewron isn't your prisoner as a punishment for him. This is a punishment for me. You want me to abandon any attempts to get close to this building. You want me to avoid getting deeper than I've already managed. You're hiding something there that you don't want me to know. I can make a promise. I swear on everything that matters to me, I will never, ever go near that building again. I will not try to break in, I will not participate in anyone else's plans to do so. I will not attempt to dig, teleport, or… or in any way glitch inside. If I break this oath, you can tear the Regime down to its foundations and you can take me back. I will come to you willingly. Just please, give him back to me.” He felt dirty, begging them for anything. He felt like a helpless, stupid child again. Which, considering his situation, wasn't far from the truth. Cucurucho was silent for a moment, staring at Ash with those soulless black eyes.
“You're truly pathetic, you know?” I know. “It's sad to look at you. And you were supposed to be so beautiful.” Cucurucho sighed as if contemplating something that would never come back. “Oh well, too bad. The milk spilled. You're right. We'd be very grateful if you'd stop snooping around here. I'll accept your offer, but with one caveat: We don't care about you. We don't need you anymore, Ashswag. We have our eye on a few other islanders who would be perfect for our new special projects. On top of the list is a certain red panda. You know he has some interesting powers?” Ash's face paled. He can't be talking about… “Necromancy! Truly amazing! It's a shame he didn't want to cooperate with us willingly. We could create something wonderful together.” He approached Ash's face and looked him straight in the eye. “If you ever break that promise, you'll bring him back to us yourself. Him and the others we're interested in. Do you understand?” Ash could only nod. He'll hate himself for this later. “Excellent. So let's go. I don't want to waste any more time.”
Cucurucho grabbed Ash's arm and teleported them inside the Federation building, then led Ash down a white corridor. Everything here was white. Nothing had changed. Ash hated that white. Ironic that his own pantheon was made of it. You can take the experiment out of the Federation, but you can't take the Federation out of the experiment. Cucurucho stopped at a door at the end of the corridor.
“Your panda is here. He's freshly medicated, so you should be able to carry him out of here without him falling apart on the way.” Ash fought hard not to lunge at Cucurucho. He could feel the glitches on his body reacting to his emotions. He hoped the federation employee would disappear from his sight before he did anything drastic. “We've temporarily lifted the teleportation block on this room. You're supposed to be gone in ten minutes.” Cucurucho started to walk away, but turned one last time and said, “I really prefer birds. Glitches and codes are so repulsive. I hope you enjoy the island.” And he was gone. He disappeared through the door at the end of the hall.
Ash breathed a sigh of relief. He hated being near Cucurucho. He still couldn't believe this plan had worked. He might have sold his soul to the devil, but it had been worth it. Now he had to focus on who he came here for in the first place. He hesitantly opened the door, afraid of what he would see. He knew how brutal the Federation could be. He was greeted by a boot thrown at him.
“I won't tell you anything, you white motherfuckers! You can just give up already!"
He saw Ewron sitting in the corner of the nearly empty cell on a pile of blankets that made a sad excuse for a bed. He was curled up in a defensive position, ready to pounce at any moment. His normally white clothes were all dirty and torn. Apparently, they hadn't even shown him the mercy of giving him any clean clothes. The sight of both dried and fresh blood on the fabric made Ash feel sick. He couldn't see his body now, but he was sure that beneath the tattered clothing were wounds of various kinds in varying stages of healing. He was only certain that none of them had received the medical attention they deserved. The panda's fur and hair were disheveled. The normally beautiful reddish color that Ash associated so strongly with autumn leaves had become dull. Ash's gaze shifted to his face, and oh gods… he almost cried. His face was battered, covered in black, green, and purple bruises. He was covered in scratches and barely healed wounds. The dark circles under his eyes were as deep as those of Tubbo when he forgets himself and works all night on machinery. His eyes, his beautiful blue eyes, the ones Ash so often gets lost in, were so tired. So full of pain, terror, and hatred. To think that despite his terrible condition, Ewron was still willing to stand up to the Federation, to fight them.
Damn, Ash really loved him.
“Ewron…” Through the lump in his throat, he managed only to utter the other man's name. Only when the panda heard him did he realize who was standing before him. He lowered his fighting pose, and his eyes widened.
“Ash?” he asked in a low voice, as if afraid it was a hallucination that might be broken by the noise. “How? Y-you're really here? This isn't some sick trick, right? I'm not imagining this? Please, tell me it's not just my imagination! You really came for me?”
Ash couldn't answer. Overwhelmed by emotion, all he had to do was act. He was so happy to see him, to see him alive. Wounded, hurt, but alive. Ash was so filled with love for his blade that he couldn't even think straight. He did as his subconscious told him. He moved toward Panda, fell to his knees, and took his face in his hands, staring into his eyes.
“What are you—” Ewron didn't get to finish as his mouth was covered by Ash's in the most desperate kiss he had ever experienced. Ash poured all the emotion into that kiss, everything he couldn't even express in words. After a moment, he felt Ewron relax and melt into his touch, returning the kiss. He grabbed Ash by the collar, pulling him impossibly closer. One of Ash's hands moved to Panda's hair, gently combing it. When he caught the hybrid's ear, the panda let out a sigh of pleasure, and his tail wrapped around Ash's torso. They only stopped when they needed air. Ewron stared at Ash as if he'd just given him a star from the sky. Despite his bruised face, he was still as handsome as ever. He was about to say something, but Ash beat him to it. He had to get everything out before he chickened out.
“Ewron, I love you.” Panda seemed speechless. “I have feelings for you like I've never had for anyone before, and they terrify me. I can't live without you. You're my oxygen and the center of my universe. You're my blade, and what's an assassin without his blade? Forgive me for not saying that before.”
“Wow,” Ewron said, but there was none of his usual nastiness. He was smiling sincerely. “If I'd known I had to be kidnapped for you to finally get your head out of your ass, I would have let myself be taken sooner.”
“Don't even joke about that,” Ash said seriously. He wasn't about to let the Federation even look at the hybrid in the wrong way.
Ewron laughed, but immediately winced in pain, wrapping his arms around his torso. There must be something wrong with his ribs.
“Ow.”
“Let's get out of here before Cucurucho changes his mind,” Ash said, lifting Ewron bridal style. The panda let out a short sound of surprise, then carefully threw his arms around Ash's neck, and Ash wasted no time in teleporting them to the Regime. As soon as Ewron's gaze fell on the factories and the pantheon, his eyes filled with tears. He buried his face in Ash's neck and sobbed quietly. “Hey, hey, what's wrong?” Ash asked, alarmed.
“I can't believe I'm home,” he said in a trembling voice. “This really isn't a hallucination.” He let out a wet laugh. Ash had never wanted to hurt the Federation like this before. But he had to focus on more pressing matters now. Ewron finally needed to be cleaned and bandaged. Panda was to have no doubt that his nightmare was over.
Ash carried Ewron to his room and sat him on the bed. He carefully removed the tattered clothes from Panda's injured body and began cleaning and bandaging the wounds. The process took place in peaceful silence, interrupted only by the occasional soft sound of pain from Ewron. Each sound was like a stab to Ash's heart. Once everything was taken care of, Ash helped Ewron dress in clean clothes. Of course, they were Ash's. As he turned to change himself, Ewron spoke.
“I didn't answer you.”
“Huh?” Ash, a bit confused, turned his head towards the hybrid, who looked exceptionally shy. He wasn't looking directly at Ash, and his cheeks seemed a bit pink, and it was impossible to blame the blood on that.
“I haven't told you yet…” Ewron closed his eyes for a moment, took a breath, then fixed Ash with a determined gaze and gestured for him to approach him, which Ash did as he had just finished changing. He stopped right in front of Ewron. “I love you too.” This time, Ash blushed. “No one before you made me want to stay. No one before you made me want to stop wearing masks, to stop running from intimacy. Ash, my dearest Assassin,” Ewron took Ash's hands into his own. “You make me want to be real, to stop lying. Only you have this effect on me, no one else. I dedicated my life to you, and it was the right decision. I would be eternally grateful if you would let me be your blade for the rest of our lives,” he concluded, bringing the taller man's hands to his lips and placing a gentle kiss on them.
“You can be my blade if you let me be your Assassin. We have the whole world to conquer, and I can't imagine doing it with anyone else,” Ash said, sitting on the bed and embracing Ewron.
“You're in for it. Do you think I'd want to take over the world with Shappo?”
Carefully, so as not to irritate Ewron's wounds, Ash shifted their position to lying down. They landed in the same position as last week. This time, all the previously unspoken words were finally spoken. Ash had his reason for living in his arms, and he couldn't be happier.
“I can't wait to make 'I'm sleeping with your brother' jokes to Fariis,” Ewron whispered.
Ash smiled into his neck. Yes, he wouldn't change a thing about Ewron. This is his ideal, regardless of what that says about his taste.